Niue - August 24th to September 1

coordinates 19 03.250S,165 55.549W Alofi, Niue
The island of Niue was full of surprises for us. A country all it's own with a free association to New Zealand, has a population of less than 2000 people. Though we have noted that each island seems to be more friendly than the last, Niue is in a class all it's own. They have this amazing ability to make you feel welcome, a part of their family and take care of you at the same time. We never felt like tourists, just a part of their community. Exactly what we had been looking for. Niue is a raised coral atoll with mixed in limestone which lends itself to the creation of fantastic caves and chasms. It has striking tall cliffs around the town and has a feel very similar to the northern California coast including the weather. We spent many a day wearing jackets enjoying the cool misty air or dodging the rain while hiding in our favorite Crazy Uga (crab) Cafe. The island is just large enough that a transportation such as a rental car is necessary to really get to explore all of it's corners, so explore we did.
We pulled into the anchorage early on Thursday morning and had the luck to tie right up to a mooring ball and found ourselves surrounded by our familiar favorite fleet. The discoveries began right away. You hail the Niue Yacht Club and come in contact with Ernie, the man to know. Cyclone Heta wiped out much of their wharf/town/island a couple years back but certainly didn't damage their resolve or spirit in the least. A virtual yacht club at the present time until they rebuild, are right there to guide and help at a moments notice.

The dock is an adventure in itself as it is a gigantic concrete wharf that must stand at least 15 ft high depending on the tide. There are stairs cut into the concrete that lead down to where you step out of your dinghy and then hook it up to a LARGE hook/crane. From there a lever helps to raise and lower your dinghy in and out of the water each time you go ashore. Towards the end of the week the town lost power for a couple of days and cranking that thing up by hand is a whole different story. Most of us took to shuttling each other to shore if needed so we didn't have work our weenie arms to much.

A few cruisers rented cars and we all took turns seeing just how many cruisers you can squeeze into a Mazda Marvie. Each day we explored another cave or chasm and were surprised to find each one unique and amazingly different from the last. Tavala Caves on the north west side of the island were found at the end of a 20 minute hike, cavernous and smooth edges filled with warm brown, green and red colors. Through the other side you have a view of their large arches that frame the ocean scene. Down the left side of the hike you come to Matapa Chasm that is a fairly narrow canyon with cool fresh spring water running into it from the land side and warm ocean water coming in from the outside. The two provide an wonderful swimming hole cool on top, warm on the bottom, with a mix of fish and coral for viewing.
Togo chasms on the south east side are like 3 worlds in one. You hike through lovely tropical forest and then step into a scene from someone else's moon. Pinnacles of sharp jagged black stones reach up all around you and over look the ocean. A small turn to the right and you descend a sturdy wooden ladder into a miniature sandy oasis tucked in between it all. A small cave to explore there allows you to watch the swells surge and spray into it's open window to the world.
Anapala is a narrow path that leads you down an even more narrow stair case which ends at an extremely narrow chasm. Wide enough in places for only one or two people to swim pass each other there lies a very cool fresh water swimming hole nearly entirely in the dark. Bits of day light break through the top or the end of the chasm allowing your eyes to adjust and see clear shrimp and the rare fish. Very exhilarating swim.
Limu pools sits just off the road on the west coast and almost has the appearance of a naturally placed oriental garden in between two shallow pools. Both crystal clear and inviting for some snorkeling under a small arch or amongst shallow caves. Climbing the towering rocks that surround have become as much fun for the boys as swimming itself. One of the amazing aspects to all these hikes is that they are extremely accessible. The locals have by hand carried and placed miles of simple rough concrete paths at all difficult junctions to make it possible to enjoy their world. These were just a few of the ones we had a chance to see out of dozens that line the entire coast line of the island.

Other highlights of the week had to be a local fair held in the town of Lakepa. Much like a miniature state fair they had contests for the largest and best produce including some very large taro roots and such. There was a raffle for some beautiful crafts such as quilts, woven baskets and wood work. A few dances from the locals including aerobics Niue style. Jenny from Sea Kardinal, Judy from Desire and Alyson from Zafarse gave them a run for their money.
You do have to watch your step around the grounds because every so often you would come across a large blue coconut crab tied by a string from one leg to the nearest pole like a leash. He'll let you know when you are too close. They cook and eat them much like any other lobster. There were food booths dotting the perimeter and each cruiser bought something a little different to taste. We are still not sure what Kelly girl bought, it came wrapped beautifully in palm leaves, tasted mildly sweet but was nearly yellow translucent with the consistency of, of... well we are just not sure. A cross between rubber and spackling.

Tristan and Bruce had the opportunity to scuba dive with a few friends and went through "snake gully". Yep, there are sea snakes that do not harm you. They explored a couple of under water caves which hid clawless lobsters that just stare at you Tristan says. At the end of their dive they followed around a pod of spinner dolphins. Much more fun to dive outside of a class so says Tristan.

A couple of days before we departed Niue, Sensei and Moorea made their way to Tonga. About 100 miles out, Sensei developed problems when their forestay broke below their roller furling. In 25 knot winds that equals an anvil being whipped around on the end of a 50 ft steel wire. They managed to stabilize their mast and with moral support from Moorea both decided to beat against the wind and head back to Niue for repairs. It is one of those unfortunate moments that help you to see just how amazing a group these cruisers are. With everyone at the ready and by the radios for whatever support might be needed, Sensei and Moorea made it back to the anchorage and on to moorings in the dark. The next two days was a collaboration of great proportions as everyone rallied ideas, spare pieces and parts, and lots of man power to help them get their rig ready to roll for Tonga again. It makes us proud to have bonds with such an amazing group.

With everyone back in running order it was time to leave. It is amazing just how attached you can become and how quickly you can get the lay of the land in just one week. Learning the in's and out's of life in a village such as which stores you need to hit for what, Senu the laundry lady, how to work the banks, customs and immigration, the favorite hang outs, new languages. The morning markets on Tuesday and Fridays that if you aren't there at 5 am you'll miss the best produce. We missed twice. We can now tell you that the butcher has the best produce and the best breads are found in the pool hall. The word Kai as in our name in Hawaiian means water or sea, but in Niuen it means eat. Ohana Kai, family water or family eat, works well for us.
We are on our way to Tonga, about to cross the international date line and off to spend a couple of months exploring a few of their 170 islands before migrating to New Zealand for the cyclone season.
New Photos and updated pages on the Web site, check out the new Crazy Cruisers page. It might help to put some faces to the names of the fun people we've met along the way.
until next time,
lisa and the boys

The other side of Palmerston

Thursday August 24 coordinates 19 02.429S,169 12.683W
We are currently under way to the island of Niue and had some time write about the friendlier and fun side of Palmerston Island.
We were greeted by them on the radio before we even reached the anchorage. They knew we were coming as we were carrying some supplies for them but always nice to get an early morning greeting from shore. Edward Marsters, our host greeted us in his boat and helped point out the mooring we were to use. By that afternoon we were all ashore and after quick introductions we were off on the most interesting of island tours provided by the local children. 72 people live on Palmerston island within the atoll chain, 24 of which are children. Each a descendant of William Marsters and one of his 3 Penrhyn wives. They can, with blinding speed, recite their lineage back. We were lost after "my mothers father...". We quickly covered the town and saw the school, met the principal/teacher Yvonne, whose husband Tere we had met back in Rarotonga. We saw all the grave sites from William Marsters on down, the local Palmerston Yacht Club built for us "yachties" complete with laundry facilities and showers. We toured their freezers section compliments of Bill. They joke that there are more freezers per capita here than any where else in the world. Fishing is their source of income. The supply ship reliably makes it rounds to the island maybe, possibly every month or so, depending on the weather as well as many other factors we are sure. So you can see where having great freezers can come in handy keeping the fish ready for them until then. The island generator only runs 12 hours a day in two 6 hour cycles so keeping things frozen is challenging at best, even with their flash/burst freezer. Bill proudly open the doors to show us the amazing display of their catches. Some of the largest parrot fish we have ever seen for starters and the numbers abound. The children showed us the administration building, a very professional sight in the middle of a remote paradise isle. They were quickly climbing trees and dropping coconuts and even more quickly demonstrating their abilities to whack them open on re bar or machetes as early as age 5. We learned more about coconuts in 4 minutes with them than 4 months in the south pacific all together. We finally had the opportunity to taste the innards of a coconut after it has moved into it's "pod" stage in which the inside of the coconut gets a spongy type material that is edible. Not something we would partake of on a regular basis but edible. A few moments more with them and we had learned the art of their style of marbles and spear throwing. {hint: stay out of the way}

The island itself is not very large and well covered with palm trees. Though the wind was blowing like stink, as we like to say, on the outside there was no hint of it within the confines of this well protected little village. The walk ways between each home or building are sandy and tree lined and interestingly enough lit with 6 street lights. It is tough to weigh that at times with the fact that they could use more water cisterns and a new school building as well. Or more basic medical supplies such as a blood pressure cuff large enough to fit everyone. They have no way at the moment to get larger boats into the lagoon making it difficult to get supplies. The supply ships have to anchor out like the rest of us and then off load onto the local dinghy's. Progress is a double edged sword though and any improvements to allow more traffic would surely do damage to their amazing environment and remove much of their isolated charm.

Abby from Sea Kardinal and our boys had a great time one day visiting the school for their PE class. Participating in great relay games the comraderie built quickly. Swapping games of marbles or rides on their one swing strung from the highest tree branch. A one room classroom at the moment and also home to Principal/teacher Yvonne and her family, looks much like any bright and budding place of learning at home. The walls are adorned with fun creativity including a beautiful quilt depicting their island and town. The desks are all aligned neatly and the children smiling and giggling. Though they do not yet have internet access on the island they do have a web site at www.palmerstonisland.com. Check it out and let us know what you find. They are always looking for feedback and support and we would love to see them get it.

We did have the opportunity to share a couple of meals Edwards family and relatives. A special day as they had just killed their largest pig. We also spent some more time with another couple visiting from Canada that had come over from Rarotonga with our pals the Kelly's on s/v Moorea. An extra special event was the birth of the newest island member baby boy Marsters. No name yet. Mom was doing great and graciously let us in to congratulate her and welcome her newest little one to the world, thus bringing the island population to a rousing 73. Our final hours there were spent making chocolate chip cookies with Jenny from s/v Sea Kardinal and Shirley Marsters, the kids got to take turns riding bikes, watching the littlest pigs get their "stones" cut off so that they would grow bigger and fatter rather than have more offspring, taking one last walk around the beach chasing hermit crabs, and picking our handfuls of wild basil that grows there. They just shake their heads at us as we walk off with their "weeds".

As with any other "family" there are certainly the usual squabbles and communication issues but we never felt their impact and we found everyone in Palmerston to be so amazingly warm and genuine. They were filled with a great sense of humor and generosity. It wasn't the stay we were anticipating certainly due to the weather but an adventure none the less and left us wanting for more. We hope to return someday and share in their world a bit more.
until next time,
Lisa and the boys